


Tony's a Baby! Help!

by puppyolove



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Iron Man - All Media Types, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Avengers Family, Comedy, De-aged tony, M/M, Protective Avengers, Protective Steve Rogers, Team as Family, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, steve acting as a dad for a bit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-22
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2018-08-10 09:13:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7839049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/puppyolove/pseuds/puppyolove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Even the most detailed plan has some kind of flaw, so the Avengers always tried to account for every single scenario.</p><p>A de-aged Tony Stark was not in any of those.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. That Time Tony Ate Slime

The city was looking gross. Well, this part of it was anyways. It looked like Godzilla caught a cold and used the streets and buildings as his tissue. Everything was gooey and oozing and the Avengers were probably going to go through three bottles of shampoo each just to get this stuff out of their hair.

  

“Iron Man, we’re coming down to assist you.” Captain America’s voice rang out through the communications system.

 

Tony was fighting the last of the purple slime ball looking monsters that decided to invade New York. His faceplate was long gone, crushed and lost in the five hour battle, and one of his jet thrusters was clogged by slime. He couldn’t respond—his faceplate was gone, therefore the speaker was gone also—but gave a final blast with his repulsor as an answer. _No assistance needed._

 

He predicted a slime splash back, he did just blast the thing, but he didn’t expect it to fucking land in his mouth. Tony reeled back with a grimace and shout. That was a weird taste that he didn’t want to experience ever again.

 

Tony could see the rest of the Avengers jogging towards him with amused smiles at seeing him covered head to toe in goo.

 

Tony was about to flip them the finger when he suddenly felt his body tingling and widened his eyes, “Uh oh.”

 

The smiles on the Avengers’ faces flew away when they saw Tony disappear within his suit.

 

Steve reached the still standing armor first, an anxious expression on him that quickly transformed to confusion when he heard a whimper from within the armor.

 

“Why are you just standing there? Tony disappeared!” Clint exclaimed. Steve immediately hushed him and the surrounding members.

 

“Be quiet. I think I heard something.” Steve carefully approached the scuffed up armor and lowered his body until the side of his head was placed next to the suit’s abdomen.

 

Bruce, Natasha, and Clint gave each other a look before circling around the suit as well.

 

In the silence, a distressed wail escaped from the suit.

 

The team immediately helped lower the suit onto the gravel, being careful of not moving the heavy armor around too much incase they injured what—or whom—they thought was in there.

 

They moved back to give Steve space as he pressed the emergency eject button.

 

As the suit opened up, the soft sobbing noise from inside became much clearer.

 

There, lying in the cavity of the armor’s abdomen was a small brunette toddler. His chubby face scrunched up with anguish as large droplets of tears slid down the side of his face.

 

Steve quietly gasped out as he reached in to gently remove the fragile being from the suit.

 

The toddler’s sobbing slowed down to a sniffle as he was cradled in Captain America’s arms. His scrunched up face relaxed and his eyes opened, revealing large brown eyes framed by wet eyelashes.

 

“Oh. My. God.” Clint whispered.

 

“Avengers, report. What’s going on down there?” Nick Fury’s voice broke through the shocked atmosphere.

 

Natasha responded as calmly as anyone could be in a situation like this, “… We have a problem.”

 

In Captain America’s arms was a gurgling one year old Tony Stark.


	2. That Time Clint's Face Made Tony Cry

Steve glared at Fury, eyes sharp with stubbornness and anger.

 

“I’m not letting you take Tony.” In his arms was said toddler, face still sticky from the slime even though Steve cleaned him up as best as he could with a wet cloth. Tony was wrapped up in a white towel, his legs fidgeting and arms stuck out from a tiny gap.

 

“Captain, it would be best if Shield takes him to find out a way to cure him of,” Fury gestured at the curiously blinking toddler, “… This.”

 

Steve looked down at toddler playing with his uniform. Tony was making little cooing noises as his tiny hands nudged at the star stretched across Steve’s chest. Even as an infant, Tony was so curious. If Shield took Tony, they would probably keep him in a blank room. Observe him through one way glass. The only time he’ll get any human contact is when they come to poke and prod him and take blood from those fragile arms. Tony would just be another strange phenomenon to them.

 

Steve could never let that happen to such an innocent being.

 

“No.”

 

“Rogers-“

 

Steve shot Fury his best stern glare, the one that left him winning almost every argument. “I said _no_ , Fury. Tony is part of the Avengers and as team leader, he is _my_ responsibility. Bruce has a lab at the Towers and he can do tests. We also contacted Thor and he said he’ll help us too. So while we figure out a way to cure Tony, we’re also going to care for him.”

 

Steve turned around and walked out of the office, the door slamming shut behind him. Clint, Bruce, and Natasha immediately stood up straight from leaning against the wall in the hallway when they saw him.

 

“How’d it go?” Clint asked.

 

“Shield wanted to keep him for observation.” Steve could see the frowns they each had between their brows tightened. “But I said no. We’re going to be taking care of him.” The tension immediately flew from their faces.

 

“Let’s get going, then. If I’m hungry then that means Tony must be starving.” Clint said as he gently stroked Tony’s chubby cheeks, smiling when Tony scrunched up his face.

 

*****

 

The elevator door closed shut behind the team as they arrived at the communal floor in the tower. The large area was tastefully decorated: floor-to-ceiling windows acting as walls showed off the beautiful night view of the city, the walls were painted a dark grey, contrasting against the light wooden floor, and in the center of the room was a modern fireplace. To the left of was a matching kitchen, its island counter overflowing with pastel giftwrapped boxes and bags along with containers of the team’s usual takeout.

 

“I called Pepper and told her what happened.” Natasha said when she saw the three men’s surprised face. “She’s in Malibu right now but said she’ll come back as soon as possible.”

 

“Thanks, Nat.” Steve sheepishly smiled at her. What idiots they were, the tower didn’t have anything fit to take care of a kid, much less a one year old.

 

Bruce made his way to one of the bags and pulled out a can of baby formula and bottle.

 

“I’ll make Tony’s milk. Quite surprising that he hasn’t cried for food yet.” Bruce gave a fond smile at Tony before going to boil some water.

 

“Yeah, guys. Eat while I play with the little guy.” Clint grinned as he reached out for Tony and gently plucked him from Steve’s cradle. He held Tony up by the armpits, towel slipping off and leaving him in an emergency diaper Bruce fashioned out of a small towel, until he was eyelevel. “You’re a cute one, aren’t you?” Clint began to make cooing sounds resulting in Steve chuckling at the display and Natasha rolling her eyes with a quirk of the lips.

 

Tony let out happy giggles and reached an arm out to grab Clint’s twitching nose. The sound of his laughter rang throughout the fifty-sixth floor and all four of them were enamored by the cute toothy grin.

 

Everything was going well, right until Clint crossed his eyes and stuck out his tongue.

 

The sudden stop of Tony’s laugh and his dropped smile would have been comical if it didn’t result in a disaster.

 

Without warning, Tony let out the world’s loudest scream. The cry pierced through their ears and caused the team to wince and, including Natasha, panic.

 

“Damn it! Your ugly face scared him!” Natasha said as she covered her ears with her hands.

 

“It’s not ugly!” Clint cradled leaned Tony against his shoulder, an arm underneath his bottom and a hand patting against his back. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. C’mon, Stark. Shhhhh.”

 

If anything, Tony’s cry got louder.

 

“Maybe he’s hungry!” Steve exclaimed. “Bruce, is his bottle ready?”

 

“The water hasn’t boiled yet.” The hopeful looks on their faces dashed, especially Clint’s since Tony’s scream was right in his ear.

 

Natasha started ripping open the pastel boxes on the counter, “Help me find a toy, or a pacifier. Anything!”

 

Bruce and Steve immediately began tearing apart the boxes as Clint tried to—terribly—console Tony.

 

In seconds, the kitchen floor was littered with cardboard and paper as a pile of diapers and clothes gradually grew.

 

As the minutes passed and Tony continued wailing, Steve wanted to almost curse at Pepper for buying so many things. Almost.

 

Finally, one of the boxes split apart and the Avengers’ Plush Toys rained on the floor like an answer to their prayers.

 

Steve grabbed the one closest to him and sprinted over to Tony.

 

“Hey, little guy. I got you something. Look!” Steve wiggled the Captain America toy in front of Tony’s face.

 

Sensing something in front of him, Tony opened his eyes. When Tony saw the red, white, and blue toy held by the man wearing the same red, white, and blue uniform, he ceased his crying and stretched out his arm.

 

A relieved sigh was expelled from everyone.

 

Steve watched as Tony clutched the toy and gnawed on one of its legs, “… Is that bottle ready yet?”

 

*****

An empty bottle dropped to the floor with a light thud. With her ex-assassin speed, Natasha grabbed the pink bottle and placed it next to the eight empty trays of take out (four of those belonging to Steve) scattered on the dining table.

 

Tony sat on Steve’s lap, alternating between playing with Steve’s fingers and throwing his Captain America toy onto the floor just to see it be picked up and placed in his hands again.

 

“Go hit the shower and sleep, guys.” Steve said when he saw Clint’s head start drooping. “I’ll bathe Tony and get him to bed too.”

 

“Are you sure, Steve? We don’t mind helping.” Bruce asked as he bent down and handed Tony his—once again—thrown toy.

 

“I’m sure.” Steve held the toy’s right arm between his finger and thumb, “I don’t need much sleep, you guys look exhausted, and Tony’s been studying gravity long enough.”

 

“We’ll clean up then.” Natasha said, getting up from her seat and dragging a yawning Clint and a dazed Bruce to the pile of baby products littered on the floor.

 

“Thanks, guys.” Steve said appreciatively. He looked down at the top of Tony’s dark, wavy hair, chuckling when Tony start nodding off, “Alright, kiddo. Let’s go get you ready for bed.”

 

Steve got up and turned Tony around in his arms until his chubby cheek rested on Steve’s broad shoulders. Steve had to hurry, then. He didn’t want to have Tony fall asleep before he bathed and risk waking up a potentially grumpy toddler.

 

Getting into the elevator, Steve pressed the button to his floor and bounced Tony gently as a way to keep him awake.

 

“I know you’re sleepy,” Steve said as a reply to Tony’s annoyed mumble, “But just a few more minutes and you can sleep all you want.”

 

Tony huffed but stayed awake, even beginning to perk up when the door slid open to reveal Steve’s floor.

 

Unlike the communal floor below, Steve’s floor didn’t have a fancy fireplace in the center of the room. Instead, he had white couches on a plush, cream rug, contrasting against the birch flooring. Books and paintings lined the white walls and gave wonderful pops of colors, especially during the day when the floor-to-ceiling windows allowed sunlight to stream in.

 

Steve sped to the bathroom, spotting the new additions of bath products and a basket full of soft towels and diapers on the counter. He really had to thank Pepper tomorrow.

 

“Jarvis, start a bath for us, please. Not too hot.” Steve asked the AI as he gently laid Tony down next to the basket and stripped him of his makeshift diaper. “You’re such a good boy,” Steve praised when he noticed the lack of a mess in the towel and Tony flashed a toothy smile in return.

 

“The bath is ready, Captain.” Jarvis’s voice echoed throughout the room and caused Tony to tilt his head curiously up to where he thought the voice came from.

 

As Steve began to remove his clothes, he couldn’t help but wonder if Tony recognized the Jarvis’s voice. He did create him after all.

 

Steve lifted Tony into his arms, “Time to get you cleaned up.” Tony whined and tugged the back of Steve’s sticky hair, “I know, buddy. I need to bathe too.”

 

*****

 

Giving Tony a bath wasn’t bad at all, quite the opposite, really. Tony was calm and obedient, silently playing with the rubber duck that was tossed in earlier as Steve sat behind him and carefully washed the suds from his head and body.

 

They were currently in Steve’s room, Tony finally in a diaper and pajamas and no longer covered in slime.

 

Steve maneuvered Tony until he was lying in the center of the king-sized between two fluffy pillows, “You comfortable, buddy?” As a response, Tony’s eyes fluttered shut. Steve smiled, his eyes soft with affection, and reached a hand out to push the freshly dried hair out of Tony’s face.

 

He lifted the blanket and slid in to the right side of the bed, careful to not jostle Tony. Tomorrow, they’ll figure how to get Tony back to normal. But for now, sleep.

 

“Lights off.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update finished! I posted before a week passed, is that impressive or what?  
> Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!


	3. The Peculiar Purple Potion (Say That Three Times Fast)

Tony woke Steve up when light had yet to peek between the curtains, with the toddler siting on his stomach and kneading his face until he jerked awake.

 

Now, Steve was relaxed against the white sofa, a soft smile on his face, as he watched Tony waddle between him and the toys spread out on the cream rug. Calling Tony energetic, especially after having woken up and being fed, was an understatement.

 

“You know it’s five in the morning, right?” Steve asked Tony, his voice and expression amused when the little brunette began climbing up his leg.

 

Tony made a whining noise when his legs kept slipping off of Steve’s shin and raised his arms out to Steve, “Steeb! Steeb!”

 

Yep, Tony began talking right after he woke up, and guess what his favorite word was?

 

Steve faked an exasperated groan before standing and lifting Tony up, tossing him lightly in the air and catching him by the armpits. Tony giggled and wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck when their little game was finished.

 

Tony as a toddler was much more open to affection than when he was an adult, Steve lamented mentally as he stared into those big dear-like eyes. While Tony was friendly to everyone, willing to give a helping hand when unasked, when they try to help Tony, however, said man would shield himself from them, preventing himself from forming a relationship that could be described as more than just “Team Members.”

 

Steve saw through it though, the hesitation Tony felt every time he disappeared into his workshop instead of crashing onto the couch like Clint after a mission, or when he would skip their Friday dinner party, which would result in Steve carrying a plate down to the workshop because he knew Tony didn’t eat breakfast or lunch.

 

Or when they were sparring down at the gym and somehow ended up with Steve pinning Tony down, both sweaty from their workout and heaving heavily. Their eyes met and Steve could see Tony’s eyes dilate, could see Tony look down at his lips and lift his head slightly from the mat, their faces inches from each other when Tony suddenly froze and urgently scrambled out from under Steve’s weight.

 

“I see you two are getting along well.”

 

Steve turned around to see Bruce, already dressed in a white lab coat over a purple dress shirt and brown pants, step out of the elevator and head towards them. The corners of his lips quirked up when Tony beamed a toothy grin at him.

 

“Morning, Bruce. Didn’t realize you were coming up this early.”

 

“I asked Jarvis to alert me when you guys woke up.” Bruce sat down on the nearby chair and Steve sat down on the sofa with Tony in his lap. “Did he eat yet?”

 

“Yep,” Steve grinned proudly, as if feeding Tony was an accomplishment. “He finished his bottle about ten minutes ago. I didn’t realize he was such an early riser though.”

 

“That’s good.” Bruce nodded, satisfied with the answer. “I examined the slime that was on Tony yesterday.”

 

At that, Steve frowned, “What did it show?”

 

“… The tests were inconclusive. Whatever Tony ingested was not a something that came from earth.”

 

Steve looked down at Tony, who was waving his Captain America toy around, oblivious to how concerned the two men in the room were for him.

 

“Understandable, considering we don’t even know where those things even came from.” Steve dejectedly nodded. “What do we do?” Steve whispered, “Tony can’t be like this forever.”

 

“I know. That’s why I’ll need to take a blood sample before I can do more.” Bruce said and slowly pulled out a white package from the inside of his coat. He gave Steve a look, lips pursed and eyes wide and glanced at Tony, who noticed the new package object and was scrutinizing it from Steve’s lap.

 

“That shouldn’t be too hard. Tony’s been good with everything else, so far.”

 

*****

 

The room was flooded by screams and cries so loud it felt like the walls would collapse on themselves.

 

“Just a little longer,” Bruce said as he carefully removed the needle from Tony’s arm. He quickly placed gauze and a bandage over the small wound. “Done!” He yelled out in elated exasperation.

 

Steve, who was holding on to Tony’s arm so Bruce could take blood, rapidly let go of the limb and lifted the red-faced toddler up, “I know. I know. I’m sorry.” He patted Tony’s back, his frown deepening when he saw how hard Tony was crying. The little body was shaking and, combined with the painful cries, caused his guilt to grow larger.

 

The elevator slid open, “What’s with the crying? I could hear it all the way downstairs.” Clint and Natasha walked into the living room, both with concerned looks on their faces. They looked like they just hopped out of bed, in a rush to hurry to Tony.

 

Bruce held up the two small vails of blood with a slightly sheepish look, “My fault this time.”

 

“Hand me that, would you?” Steve nodded towards the Captain America toy on the couch.

 

Clint quickly handed Steve the toy, his eyebrows furrowing and lips down turning when Tony was still burrowed in Steve’s chest.

 

“Tony, do you want your toy?” Steve lightly nudged Tony’s wet cheek with the toy’s soft arm to get his attention. Tony twisted his head up just enough to peek at what was touching him. He released his cradle on his left arm and slowly reached out, holding the toy tightly to his chest once it was in his hands.

 

Tony pressed his teary cheeks to Steve’s collar, dampening the white t-shirt with its contact, “Hurt, Steeb. Hurt…” Tony’s voice broke off into another sob.

 

“I know. I’m sorry, baby.” Steve couldn’t help feeling guilty for putting Tony through this, even though he knew it was necessary. Steve continued soothing strokes up and down Tony’s back, “It’ll go away soon.”

 

Feeling the effect of Steve’s soothing pats, Tony’s sobs slowed down to hiccups.

 

“Want to go to sleep, big guy?” Steve asked when he felt Tony’s body start relaxing. Tony lethargically nodded his head as his eyes began fluttering shut.

 

Steve wiped away the remaining tears from Tony’s red cheeks with his thumb and made his way to the bedroom.

 

*****

 

Thor made his appearance while Tony was being chased by Clint, who was crawling on all fours, on the communal floor. Never one for a quiet appearance, Thor announced himself the second he stepped out of the elevator, voice booming and a grin shining on his face. Bruce, who was right behind him, jumped at the sudden noise and was sure he turned a light shade of green.

 

Tony, seeing a loud and unknown person, immediately hid behind Clint’s body.

 

“Goodness, Thor! Did you not get the memo?” Clint gestured to the hiding toddler holding on to the back of his shirt.

 

“Yes! I did!” Thor exclaimed and marched across the room, stopping once he was a foot away from Clint and crouched down, tilting his body to the side so he could see the little boy and his wide, curious eyes, “I must say, you are quite adorable as a child.”

 

Tony, recognizing a compliment when he hears one, smiled and came out of hiding while still holding on to the bottom of Clint’s shirt with one hand. His eyes trailed the Norse god’s face, across the flowing red cape draped across broad shoulders, and down until he saw Mjolnir. Tony’s eyes sparkled when he saw magical object and held out his hand to touch the hammer.

 

“I see Mjolnir fascinates you even at this age.” Thor grinned, placing Mjolnir on the ground so Tony could sate his curiosity.

 

“Hey, Thor. Glad to see you’re back,” Steve greeted as he walked out from behind the kitchen counter with a plate of cut fruit and a small bowl of yogurt.

 

“Afternoon, Captain.” Thor greeted. His eyes lit up when he saw the plate of fruits and walked closer to Steve, a hand already reaching out to grab a piece.

 

“Nu uh.” Steve said as he twisted the plate away from Thor. “These are for Tony.”

 

Thor pouted before shaking his head and clearing his throat, “Yes, well, before you do that, I have something for you.” He pulled out a crystal vial containing an almost glowing purple liquid.

 

Steve placed the plate and yogurt down onto the dining table and took the vial out of Thor’s hand, holding it up to his face to examine the content. “What is it?”

 

“Doctor Banner showed me the results of his tests, and out of all the potions on Asgard, I found this to be the most suitable cure.”

 

“From what Thor has told me, this potion will age Tony to four years old.” Bruce added in.

 

At that, Steve frowned, “Why only four? Why not make him normal?”

 

“The strain on him to physically change from a one year old to a man in his forties is dangerous. By having him age in intervals, there is less chance of potential side effects.”

 

“I see,” Steve nodded. “Do I just put it in his food?” Steve asked and glanced at the bowl of yogurt.

 

“Whichever way seems easier to you.” Bruce shrugged, “But probably as Tony is sleeping, since the change will take about six hours.”

 

“… Tonight, then.”

 

Thor placed a hand on Steve’s shoulder and gave it a firm grip, “I will bring the next vial in three days. Enjoy your time with him.”

 

Steve looked to where Tony was laughing his heart out as Clint tickled his sides and Natasha watched from her seat on the couch. A sad smile found its way onto Steve’s face.

 

He never saw Tony this carefree before. Yeah, he was going to miss it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, my dear readers! Sorry I haven't updated in weeks, let's just say I've spent more time in the library these past two weeks than I have in the past four years of college combined.
> 
> To those of you who've been waiting, thank you! I really appreciate your patience!
> 
> Just to clarify, Tony is going to age in this order: 4, 9, 12, 16, 21, then 46.


	4. Snow Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Didn't mean to leave you guys for so long.  
> Here's a chapter to make it up?  
> Hopefully Tony's adorableness will get you to forgive me
> 
> Edit: I got a twitter! It's @toastedmshmllow so go ahead and follow if you want :D

Steve stared with a solemn look on his face as Tony finished the last drop of his milk. The quickly depleting white liquid looked innocent—no one would have known that it was veiling a powerful potion.

 

Tony tossed the empty bottle, letting it bounce off the couch and fall to the rug, and crawled onto Steve’s lap. His forehead leaned against Steve’s chest and eyelashes fluttered as he struggled to stay awake.

 

“Full? Let’s brush your teeth first before going to bed, yeah?” Steve said as he placed a hand on Tony’s head and pushed the dark locks away from his forehead. Tony replied with a grunt and nodded his head, his breathing already slowing down as he began to doze off.

 

Steve stood up and carried Tony to the bathroom, taking extra time to get Tony ready for bed compared to the night before. Brushing each little tooth carefully, wiping Tony’s face with a warm washcloth, and changing Tony out of his clothes. Each step was slow and gentle, and always returned with a little toothy smile from Tony. By the time he was done, Tony was swimming in an outfit big enough for a small child.

 

After changing into sweatpants and a t-shirt, Steve padded to his bedroom with Tony cradled in his arms. Even though he could feel Tony’s head become heavy on his shoulder, he walked around the room anyways—gently patting Tony’s back in a rhythm reminiscent of his mother’s when he was a child.

 

Within moments, Tony was completely asleep.

 

Steve neared the bed and carefully laid Tony down between the pillow fort he created yesterday and slipped in next to the sleeping toddler.

 

He spent the next few minutes studying Tony, from his plump pink cheeks, to the small fist clutching at Steve’s index finger—memorizing this moment—because in six hours, this Tony wouldn’t exist anymore.

 

*****

 

“Up! Up! Get up, Steve!” The loud voice of a young child along with the constant prodding he felt against his side yanked Steve out of his dreams.

 

Steve’s eyes snapped opened. He looked around the room alert and confused before focusing on the source of the voice. Tony was in the outfit Steve dressed him in yesterday night, no longer drowning in the fabric but filling it out perfectly. He sat on the bed grinning, his black hair poking out in ten different directions, and the epitome of a cheerful four year old.

 

Steve gave a soft sigh and ran a hand down his face. The morning shock was going down and all he felt now was the effects of a full nights sleep. “Good morning to you too.” Steve smiled back before taking a hand and ruffling Tony’s mess of a hair, chuckling when Tony flailed around to escape.

 

“Let’s make breakfast, Steve!” Tony said before sliding off the bed and running out the bedroom door. Steve could only stare blankly at the indent in the sheets where Tony disappeared from, his mind still not fully awake, before kicking the blanket off his legs and heading out as well.

 

In the kitchen, Tony was moving back and forth between the refrigerator and the dining table, each time with his arms carefully wrapped around items he removed from the fridge.

 

“What’re you making, kiddo?” Steve asked as he examined everything on the table: flour, milk, sugar, and blueberries.

 

“Blueberry pancakes!”

 

Ah, yes. Tony loved blueberries, and Steve remembered him making blueberry pancakes every weekend he was free. But… “How do you know how to make pancakes?”

 

At that question, Tony paused in the middle of the kitchen, his body becoming slack. Steve watched as Tony’s eyebrows scrunched together in the middle and his eyes had an unfocused sheen.

 

Sensing that something wasn’t right, Steve hurried to Tony and kneeled down, “Tony?” Tony remained unresponsive, staring blankly at the kitchen floor. Worried, Steve pulled Tony to him and lightly patted his cheek, “Hey, Tony?”

 

As if he just woke up from a day dream, Tony shook his head and looked around in confusion, before spotting the ingredients on the table.

 

“Steve, get the bowls and pan! I want extra blueberries in mine.”

 

Steve watched in scared silence as Tony proceeded to get the eggs out of the refrigerator.

 

*****

 

“I think he’s remembering.” Bruce stated simply. Both Steve and Bruce were sitting at the dining table, mugs of coffee in front of them but still untouched. Steve had called the scientist after he and Tony made pancakes—Tony scarfing the bite-sized pieces down after he doused them in maple syrup. The said boy was in the living room, playing on his Stark-tablet after he finished Bruce’s examination.

 

“Remembering what? He literally blanked out in the middle of the kitchen.” Steve whispered, making sure that Tony wouldn’t be able to hear the distress in his voice.

 

“Most likely things from before his change.” Bruce said. “He’s trying to make sense of his memories, but having been four in one period of time and being four now, it’s more like trying to connect two different timelines together.”

 

Steve frowned, “What do I do then?”

 

Bruce shook his head, “Not much, I’m afraid. It’s probably going to happen again… and more often as he ages.”

 

Steve stared at his folded hands for a moment. “Then… Would he remember… _This_?” Steve knew that Tony didn’t exactly have a large support group growing up. Howard, occupied with Stark Industries, left Tony in Maria’s care, and when Maria was needed as well, the family’s butler, Jarvis, was the one caring for him. Too smart for his age, Tony was an outcast in a school where everyone knew who he was but not _who_ he was. The only people he considered his closest friends were James Rhodes and Pepper Potts.

 

Steve knew all of this, and that was why he hoped that when Tony aged back, which would be soon, Tony would see that the Avengers wanted him around as much as he wanted them.

 

“… I can’t say, Steve.” Bruce stared at Tony from his seat, a sad downturn on his lips, “But he may not.”

 

Steve let the information absorb for a moment before solemnly nodding.

 

He made his way over to Tony, who immediately looked up with a smile when he saw Steve.

 

“What do you have there, kiddo?” Steve asked when he sat on the rug next to Tony.

 

“I found this on the table. Look what I drew!” Tony cheerfully handed Steve the tablet. Steve looked down and saw that the sketching app he sometimes used was open. His heart instantly melted when he saw what Tony drew: a colorful picture of the Avengers standing next to each other, with Steve in his Captain America uniform carrying a small child that he knew to be Tony.

 

“It’s wonderful, Tony. I’ll send this to the rest of the guys. They’ll love it.” Tony gleefully smiled and Steve couldn’t help pinching those cheeks.

 

“Save and send this to the rest of the group, would you, Jarvis?”

 

“Of course, Captain.” Jarvis’s human-like voice rang throughout the room.

 

“Jarvis?” Tony’s eyes widened and he looked around the room searching for the source of the voice.

 

“Yes, sir?”

 

Tony looked confused, “Where are you?”

 

“… I am anywhere you need me, sir.”

 

Steve should have seen it coming. Of course Jarvis would trigger Tony’s memory—he was his best friend growing up and his father figure after his parents’ death—maybe even before their death. Tony’s eyes became blank again, and Steve watched in frustration when he could do nothing but wait. Bruce came over and observed Tony, making sure he wasn’t showing any signs of distress as he experienced an episode.

 

Tony took longer to come back compared to before, almost unmoving for two minutes, but when he did he was all smiles.

 

“Why are you staring?” He looked at the two adults, curious and confused.

 

“… Just admiring what a great artist you are, Tony.” Bruce said as he ruffled Tony’s hair. “Now, do you want to do anything today?”

 

Tony tilted his head, “Do what?”

 

“Anything you want, bud. We can go to the park, watch a movie, ice skate.” Steve suggested.

 

Tony’s eyes sparkled at the last suggestion, “I never ice skated before.”

 

“Ice skating it is. Let’s get you changed and we can go.” Steve stood up and Tony followed right along.

 

“My dad said it’s ok, right?”

 

Steve and Bruce paused in their spots. Their eyes flickered to each other before Steve responded, “Yeah, bud. Howard said that as long as we’re taking care of you, we can do whatever we want.”

 

“Oh, okay then.” Tony blinked and made a face that screamed ‘how strange’, but dismissed the suspicion and became excited at the idea of ice skating. “Let’s go! Let’s go!”

 

*****

 

Steve was lacing up Tony’s boots and poking Tony’s flushed cheeks when he wouldn’t stop fidgeting.

 

“Hold still, Tony. I can’t tie your skates if you keep wiggling away.”

 

“But Steve,” Tony whined, “Everyone is skating already.” Tony even emphasized the ‘everyone’ by pointing in the general direction of Natasha, Clint, and Bruce.

 

“ _Everyone else_ has skates on properly. Now hold still.”

 

The team and Tony were at the outdoor skating rink near the Avengers’ Tower. Almost empty since it was a weekday and people were either in school or at work, it was surrounded by beautiful blankets of snow and trees and was the perfect place for the team to enjoy the cloudless day.

 

“Okay, you’re done.”

 

As if hearing Steve, Natasha appeared out of nowhere. A smile reserved specifically for little Tony was already on her face. “Ready for your first skating lesson?” She asked and held out her hand. Tony nodded enthusiastically, placed his gloved hand in hers and stood up unsteadily on the two blades.

 

The snow crunched under Tony as he waddled to the rink. Bundled up in a red coat, a wool beanie that was slightly too large, and a scarf so thick it covered half of his face, he reminded Steve of an adorable penguin.

 

“Steve! Come on!” Tony turned slightly to him and waved a hand in the air.

 

“You go first! I’ll be right there!” Steve yelled back. The smile on his face slipped a smidge when he saw Tony slip a little getting on the ice, but Tony’s giggle as Natasha slowly pulled him across the ice quickly put it back.

 

Steve watched Tony and Natasha and felt his emotions fluctuate between worry when Tony would fall to proud when Tony would be able to skate for a few seconds before clinging to Nat again.

 

“Hey, papabear. You’re not going to skate with them?” Clint asked as he came up to Steve’s side. A light sheen of sweat and a dopey grin was on his face.

 

“I’m gonna let Tony hang out with Natasha for a bit. He should interact with more people than just me.” Steve gave a nod of thanks when he was handed a warm cup of hot chocolate.

 

Clint let out an amused chuckle, “He’ll come running back to you sooner or later. You always were the one he was closest to.”

 

Steve paused in the middle of sipping his drink. His eyebrows furrowed and he gave Clint a confused look.

 

“What? You never noticed?” Clint looked back, with an almost disbelieving face.

 

“Noticed what?”

 

“That he- Wow, really?” Clint had a bemused smirk on his face.

 

Steve gave him a glare, “Yes, really. Are you going to tell me or not?”

 

“Alright, alright.” Clint raised his hands up in a ‘don’t shoot me’ manner. “Tony was always—you know—talking to you, hanging around you at the gym, teasing you. Things like that. Much more than to the rest of us anyways. You guys seemed close.” He said with a little shrug of his shoulders.

 

“Oh.” Steve looked down at his drink. He thought Tony was like that with everyone, especially when he was in public. Tony would always joke around with the reporters during press conferences and they all seemed to like him, flying to him like moths to a candle.

 

“And speak of the devil.” Clint’s voice held amusement as he yelled, “Aren’t you supposed to be skating with Nat?”

 

Tony was doing his best to cross over to them. His arms held out to his sides to help balance as he dragged his skates through the snow.

 

“I wanna skate with Ste-!” Steve saw what was about to happen and sprinted to Tony, but wasn’t quick enough to catch the little boy before he face-planted into the snow.

 

Steve pulled Tony out of the Tony-shaped indent, stood him up, and kneeled down to stare into Tony’s face as he dusted off clumps of snow clinging to him. “Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?” Steve did a quick scan, looking for any signs of blood, cuts, or bruises.

 

An unstoppable laugh coming from the boy in front of him had Steve stop what he was doing and look down into Tony’s face. His cheeks were red and his face was slightly damp from the melted snow. What had Steve’s heart bursting with joy was the ear-to-ear grin Tony was sporting. What other choice did Steve have but to laugh as well?

 

“Lucky you. The snow was soft enough to break your fall.” Steve said as he grabbed a small handful of snow and rubbed it against Tony’s cheek.

 

“Ah! Cold!” Tony stumbled back and almost fell again, but this time Steve was ready and grabbed him before he could.

 

“How was your skating lesson?” Steve asked.

 

“Nat said I was really good! I want to skate with you now.” Tony said as he tugged Steve’s hand to lead him toward the rink.

 

“Alright, but I’m warning you, I’m not as good as Nat.” Steve said as he got up from kneeling.

 

“That’s ok. I’ll help you!” Tony grinned up at Steve as they walked to the rink. Steve grinned back and tightened his grip of Tony’s hand.


	5. The Visitor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit angsty, but at least I updated?

After being fed lunch and bathed, Tony was taking a nap in Steve’s bed. It was only noon and Steve was sitting on his couch, keeping one ear open incase Tony woke up while reading the newspaper—although the reading part was more like staring at the black fonts while his mind was occupied.

Tony was adorable; sweet, polite, and smart—a perfect child if one ever existed. As much as Steve liked seeing a little Tony running around full of infectious smiles, he couldn’t help but want his Tony back—and soon. He missed their sparring time in the gym, the joking jabs they did whenever they saw each other, and the voice that would tease him through the communication system one second and warn him of an incoming enemy the next. He missed how Tony would ramble on about science-this and engineering-that, and then do that bashful grin when he saw that he lost Steve in the explanation. 

Most of all, he missed his best friend.

“Captain Rogers, Miss Potts is requesting entry,” Jarvis’s voice broke the silence and jerked Steve out of his thoughts.

Steve glanced at the elevator, surprised that she was visiting at this hour, “Let her in, Jarvis.” Steve placed his newspaper to the side as the elevator door opened and Pepper walked in.

It looked like she just got out of a business meeting since she was wearing a pristine white blazer and matching skirt with her red hair was tied neatly in a ponytail.

The smile she gave Steve was sweet, but also seemed a bit forced.

“Good afternoon, Miss Potts.”

“Sorry about the unexpected visit, but I was around the area and wanted to stop by.” Pepper looked around the living room, obviously searching for someone. “Is Tony here?”

“He’s taking a nap right now. He should be up soon though.” Pepper nodded her head, and held her purse closer to her side. Steve and Pepper were never around each other without Tony there, and he could feel the awkward tension surrounding them. “Please sit down. I’ll go make us some tea.”

“Thank you,” Pepper said as he walked around her to the kitchen.

Steve put the kettle on the stove to boil while he rummaged around for the container of tea he got for rare occasions like this. Finding it, he prepared two cups before leaning against the counter and waited for the water to boil. 

Once again, silence caused his mind to drift.

Tony and Pepper dated. Everyone knew that. Then one day they just broke up and Steve remembered that week very clearly. Tony was in his lab more often than not, with the exception of maybe a shower. Steve wasn’t sure if he consumed anything besides coffee and a few granola bars, because when he took down a plate of sandwiches and placed them outside of the locked door, he saw the same plate, sandwiches untouched, in the kitchen later that day.

Once that week was over, Pepper came, stepping out of the elevator like a furious lion, and went to the lab. Steve wasn’t sure what happened but he remembered hearing shouts as he sat on the communal floor’s couch, and things being slammed, and then Pepper was dragging a haggard-looking Tony up and pushed him into a seat in the kitchen. Food was shoved in his mouth and Steve heard her mumble, “I still care for you, Tony, just not like that,” before she kissed his cheek and left.

That’s probably why he felt weird around her. She hurt Tony once and he didn’t want to see that happen again.

“Steve, the stove is whistling.” Steve felt a tug on his pants and looked down. He saw Tony staring up at him, his hair a mess and eyes slightly bleary from his nap.

“Oh, right.” Steve turned off the stove and poured water into the cups.

“What are you making?” Tony asked, standing on his toes with his head tilted to see more.

Steve smiled and ruffled Tony’s hair, “Tea. You have a visitor. She’s waiting in the living room.”

Tony’s eyes widened and a big grin developed on his face, “Really? Can I go see her?”

Steve was surprised at the reaction. Did Tony remember Pepper? She was his girlfriend after all so she probably had more significance in his memories than others. 

“Of course, Tony. I’ll be there after the tea finishes steeping.” Tony nodded and ran to the living room. Steve chuckled when he heard an ecstatic “Hi!” from Tony. Thinking that Pepper and Tony deserved some time alone together, Steve went to the fridge and got out apple juice and some jelly to make a snack for Tony.

Steve had just finished arranging everything on a tray and was about to bring it out when Pepper stepped into the kitchen, a smile bright on her face.

“I’m sorry, Steve, but I have to get going.”

Steve blinked at her, feeling like a deer caught in the headlights, “Oh, alright. Thanks for stopping by.”

“You’re doing a wonderful job caring for him. Thank you,” Pepper said before walking to the elevator.

Steve lifted the tray and walked to the living room. He saw Tony sitting on the couch and placed the tray on the coffee table.

“I got you apple juice and a pb&j,” Steve said with a smile and sat down next to Tony. “How was talking with Pepper?”

Tony didn’t respond, instead, he bowed his head down. Steve frowned, “Tony?” And then he saw the subtle shaking of Tony’s shoulders and heard a sniffle. 

Something was wrong.

“Tony? Tony, what happened?” Steve got off the couch and kneeled in front of Tony, trying to peer up at the face hidden beneath dark hair. Steve reached a hand out to cupped Tony’s cheek and immediately felt hot tears against his palm.

“I t-thought…” Tony mumbled something, and even with Steve’s enhanced hearing he couldn’t make it out.

“You thought what?” Steve asked in the gentlest voice he could.

“… I thought she was my mom.”

In that moment, Steve could feel his heart constricting. That’s why he was so excited. That’s why his eyes were so bright, why he ran into the living room with an ecstatic greeting… 

Tony thought his mom was here.

Steve—who grew up with his mom, who felt his mother’s love every time she worked late into the night—will never know the grief Tony, a mere four year old, is feeling.

Steve pulled Tony into his arms, wrapped him tight within them like a security blanket, and let the little boy cry.


	6. Dum-E, the First Robot

It took Tony ten minutes to transition from sobbing to occasional sniffles and even then Steve was reluctant to release him from his arms. It was only when Tony spoke did Steve loosen his hug.

“My head hurts again,” Tony said, his voice raspy and weak, as he reached up to hold his fingers to his temple. Steve gently picked Tony up and walked across the room, heading towards the elevator.

“Let’s see if Bruce has any medicine, okay?” Tony, with his head against Steve’s collar, nodded.

Steve walked through the open elevator and pressed Bruce’s floor while trying to think of a way to cheer Tony up. He never took care of a child before, much less one that was hurting. Heck, he wasn’t really great at comforting anyone—unless giving an awkward pat in a shoulder was comforting.

As he looked at Tony’s miserable and tear-streaked face, he was reminded that when Tony was an adult he would always go and tinker in his lab when he had a bad day. Of course the lab had lasers and torches and other dangerous items not suitable for a kid to be around… But maybe Tony didn’t have to be in there.

The elevator stopped and the steel doors opened, revealing Bruce’s living area with the resident nursing a cup of tea on his couch. Bruce’s eyebrows lifted when he saw the duo but his expression slid to concern when he saw Tony. He placed his cup down on his coffee table and stood up, his eyebrows scrunching together the more he looked at Tony as they walked closer.

“What happened?”

Steve smoothed back Tony’s hair and said, “His head hurts again. He was crying for a while…” Bruce and Steve shared a look, with Steve’s face saying, ‘I’ll explain later.’

Bruce nodded in understanding. “Has he eaten yet?” He asked.

Steve shook his head, “Just lunch, but that was hours ago,” and sat Tony down on the couch when Bruce gestured with to it.

Squatting down until he was eye level with Tony, Bruce spoke with a soft voice, “I’m going to get some medicine for your head, Tony, but you have to eat something with it. Alright?”

Tony avoided his eyes, choosing instead to look at his hands, but still nodded, “Okay.” Bruce let out an almost inaudible sigh and patted Tony’s head softly before heading to the kitchen.

With only two of them in the living room, Steve could feel the sadness radiating off of Tony’s small form. Tony hadn’t even lifted up his head since he was placed on the couch.

Steve looked back toward the elevator and made up his mind, “I’ll be right back.”

A small gasp escaped from Tony and Steve turned to look at him. Staring back at Steve was a pair of scared looking eyes, large and watery like a newborn fawn.

Stupid, he knew Tony was scared of being forgotten. The event not even fifteen minutes ago proved that. Steve immediately clarified his sentence, “I promise I’ll still be in the building. I’m just going to get something.”

Tony fidgeted with his hand and whispered, “What if you break your promise?” Tony took a quick glance at the elevator.

Steve went over to Tony, picked the little boy up, and gave him a tight hug, “Do you trust me?”

With his chin resting on Steve’s shoulder, Tony gave an unhesitating nod.

“Then you know that I never break my promises.” Steve saw Bruce come out with a small cup containing medicine and a plate of sliced sandwiches from the corner of his eyes. Steve looked at Bruce, “I’ll be back in fifteen minutes, tops.”

The doctor nodded and placed the sandwiches on the coffee table, “Don’t worry about us. We’ll just be eating and watching cartoons, right, Tony?”

Tony was quiet for a moment before reluctantly mumbling, “Yeah.”

“Great,” Steve said and placed Tony down. He gave him one last pat on the head before crossing the floor—his steps quick to prevent Tony from waiting—and stepped into the elevator. Once inside, he pressed the button for the floor he hadn’t visited since Tony was de-aged.

The descent was quick, and the doors slid open to reveal a large high-tech lab. As an engineering genius with a budget that allowed him to create practically anything he wanted, the lab was no doubt incredible: steel walls, an area full of monitors, and dozens of Iron Man suits stood in glass displays at the perimeter.

Steve looked around as he walked to the center of the floor. Scattered on top of piles of paper at a desk were five mugs, previously containing coffee no doubt; a gauntlet sat on a worktable with a blowtorch and a welding mask next to it. Steve could practically picture Tony hunched over the table, sparks flying in twenty different directions as he created the hand for his armor.

Everything looked so normal, Steve almost couldn’t believe that the man who created all of this was currently a child eating a sandwich upstairs.

“Alright, Rogers. Focus.” Steve spun around, looking.

“Dum-E!” Steve shouted. “I need your help!” He listened carefully, and smiled when he heard the sound of motors and wheels slowly getting closer.

The robot came out from behind a wall and slowed to a stop a foot away from Steve.

_Beep beep._

*****

Transporting Dum-E wasn’t an easy task. The robot was too big for Steve join it in the elevator, so he had to instruct Jarvis to lift the elevator with Dum-E inside by itself. Of course, Steve forgot to tell the robot that it had to actually _exit_ the elevator, and ended up seeing the gleaming robot when he called the elevator down again. A few more trials occurred before they even got anywhere, most of it consisting of:

“Dum-E, you have to leave the elevator. Nonono, not right now.”

“Leave the elevator when the door opens.”

“When you reach the floor and you _don’t_ see me, exit the elevator.”

“What’s taking so long?” “Dum-E seems to be stuck, Captain Rogers.”

Steve was eagerly waiting on the communal floor, staying just in case Dum-E decided to ‘help’ around, and eyed the flashing numbers that showed the elevator was coming down. He had told Jarvis to get Bruce and Tony down for the surprise and was happy to know that Tony was as excited as he hoped he would be.

The second the elevator dinged open, he felt a small weight crash into his legs and wrap around them like an octopus. His hand automatically came down to rest on top of soft hair and looked at Bruce, who was leaning against the elevator wall.

The doctor shrugged with the corners of his lips lifting up, “He missed you.”

Steve lightly tapped the top of Tony’s head, getting him to look up at him, “Did you finish your medicine?”

Tony nodded vigorously, “I drank it all even though it was yucky.”

“Good,” Steve said, “Then I guess I can show you something really cool.”

Steve could feel Tony vibrate from anticipation, “What is it?”

Steve felt an uncontrollable smile forming on his face. He got Tony to release him before lightly nudging the boy down to the living room.

“Why don’t you go look?”

Tony grabbed Steve’s hands and practically sprinted to their destination, a laughable situation since three of Tony’s steps equaled one of Steve’s.

Next to the window, with metal glinting in the sunlight, stood Dum-E.

A shocked gasp left Tony and his eyes widened, “A robot!” He quickly left Steve and ran to Dum-E, which had begun chirping as it met its creator.

Tony’s little hands immediately began running up and down the robot as he circled it, touching its wheels, the steel body, and a few thick wires. He reminded Steve so much of what Tony as an adult would often do, that he couldn’t help but feel a bit nostalgic.

Dum-E’s three-pronged head moved down until was at Tony’s eye-level, tilting left and right as if it wondered why its creator was so small.

“Its name is Dum-E,” Steve told Tony and sat down on the couch near the two.

Tony giggled hearing that, “You have a funny name,” he said to the robot. “I like it.”

“Wanna play with him?” Steve removed a small ball from his pocket and handed it to Tony, “Here.”

Tony immediately knew what to do. With a giant grin, he tossed the ball away from him, “Fetch, Dum-E!”

*****

Throughout the afternoon, Tony played with Dum-E and Steve. Bruce, who was content with lounging on the couch and watching, fell asleep after watching Tony play fetch for twenty minutes. The tricks Tony got the robot to do was quite impressive, as if Dum-E had been built to be more entertaining than useful. When Steve remembered that Tony built the robot in his father’s workshop as a teenager, he couldn’t help but think that there might be more truth to that thought than he hoped.

Natasha and Clint, having returned from their mission for Shield, were making dinner for the team—a recipe inspired by their recent trip to Germany. The sounds of cracks, pounds, and metal against metal made it sound like a small war was happening in the kitchen.

Steve walked over to the kitchen area, eying the large mess of bowls and egg shells spread across the counter and haphazardly spilling into the sink. For two spies who were all about doing things quick and clean, the place was a mess—although he had to admit there was an enticing aroma coming from the oven.

“How’s it going in here, guys? Need any help?” Steve asked as he watched Clint push yellow dough through a colander and into a pot of boiling broth.

“Almost done here. Everything should be ready in ten minutes,” Natasha said from behind him.

“Okay,” Steve said and turned away to face her, “I’ll just get Tony washed up.” Natasha was looking at him, her eyes slightly squinted with what he could only describe as amusement. “What?” Steve asked, feeling a bit unnerved.

“Nothing, you’re just wrapped up in some very tiny fingers,” she teased.

“Hah, more like tangled, knotted, _and_ superglued,” Clint said with a grin before turning around to toss the used colander and spatula into the sink. The resounding clang had Natasha glaring daggers at him.

Steve knew they were joking, although there was more than enough evidence to prove that what they said was true, so he rolled his eyes with a smile and walked out of the kitchen.

Tony was coloring in one of Steve’s sketchbooks, his eyebrows scrunched together as he looked back and forth between the sketchbook and Dum-E. A smudge of blue was streaked across his cheek and a pink across his nose. Looking down at Tony’s hand, Steve could see all the colors of the rainbow and more smeared across his skin.

Tony looked up and beamed a grin at Steve before getting up. “Steve, Steve! I drew Dum-E! Look!” Tony proudly held up the sketchbook where a drawing of Dum-E was holding a ball, Steve was holding onto Tony’s hand, and Bruce was sleeping on the couch.

Steve couldn’t help but laugh as he got closer to get a better look. “It looks great, Tony. The colors are spot on,” Steve said and gently ruffled Tony’s hair. “Dinner is almost ready. Let’s go wash your hands and face.”

“Aw, okay,” Tony pouted and placed the sketchbook down on the coffee table. He then grabbed Steve’s hand and led him to the bathroom.

“Can Dum-E come to dinner with us?” Tony asked as Steve wiped off the ink from Tony’s face with a warm washcloth.

“Dum-E doesn’t eat food,” Steve said and began on wiping Tony’s hands.

A giggle escaped from the little boy like he thought what Steve said was silly, “I _know_ that. Dum-E can stand near me and watch.”

“Smarty-pants,” Steve said as he tickled a giggling Tony’s side. “Sure, it can watch, but _only_ if you agree to eat all of your vegetables. And you’re not allowed to play until you’re done. Got it?”

“Uh-huh,” Tony nodded his head up and down.

“Alright, let’s go help set the table.”

As they sat around the dining table, plates full of beef covered in gravy, noodles, and roasted vegetable, Steve couldn’t help the warm feeling that was radiating throughout his body. Natasha and Clint were telling the group about their mission and having a silly argument—something about how Natasha wouldn’t have had to blow up a car if Clint ran faster—with Bruce injecting sarcastic and witty comments in-between. Tony was teasing Dum-E with a carrot stabbed on his fork, only to chew on it moments later when the robot reached out to get it.

At the end of the night, when Steve was finished with dressing Tony for bed, Tony wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck.

“Thanks for making me happy again.”

Steve automatically hugged the boy to his chest and felt as if his heart was growing too big for his chest, “Of course, Tony. Anything for you.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter felt lighthearted :) And yes, I realize I have been gone for much longer than I wanted. On the positive side, I am now the owner of a very expensive piece of paper that’s probably going to be in my closet for the rest of my life (no joke, it’s a degree but who cares about that part. Get scholarships, people.)
> 
> Hope you guys had lovely New Years and holidays <3


	7. You’re a Catch, Baby

“Clint, do you think it’s safe to be showing Tony that?” Steve asked exasperatedly. Everyone, minus Bruce, was currently in the gym. Heroes had to keep their bodies in tip top conditions after all, and Steve hadn’t had much time to work off his excess energy since Tony’s deaging.

Tony had, overnight it seemed, developed a sort of reluctance to Steve leaving him for longer than a few minutes, as evidenced by this morning. Steve stepped in the shower with Tony sleeping on his bed, and stepped out of the shower with Tony sleeping on the bathroom mat. A large pillow under his whole torso acted as a mattress and his Captain America plushie was held tightly in his arms. Even Steve’s towel was used as a blanket.

For the rest of the morning, Steve felt like a mother duckling—Steve wouldn’t be in a room without Tony a few feet behind him. So it came as no surprise that Tony tagged along when Steve headed down for team training.

Clint, finally having someone ‘fun’ to show off to, decided that Tony needed to see him shoot at targets.

“What?” Clint replied with a shrug, “The target’s seventy feet away, and besides, Tony’s standing behind me. Aren’t you, kiddo?” He looked down and winked at Tony, who shouted back an enthusiastic “yeah!”

Steve could only sigh. At least Clint wasn’t using the flaming arrows. Or the exploding ones.

“Here,” Natasha suddenly said, crouching down to Tony’s height. She wrapped a band around Tony’s wrist and pressed a button, causing a blue, holographic disc to form. “Hold it like this, and toss it,” she said and demonstrated, grabbing the small disc and flinging it like a frisbee to the shooting range. Clint expertly shot an arrow at it, causing the disc to disappear with a little pop.

Tony’s eyes widened and a great big smile appeared. Copying what Natasha did, he flung the disc as hard as he could and watched the hologram fly, laughing when Clint shot it again.

Steve looked at them fondly. What an adorable yet slightly menacing image they made.

Turning to the punching bag in front of him, he narrowed his focus and began his exercise. The background noise reminded Steve of popcorn being microwaved and was strangely energizing.

Sweat was forming on his skin, soaking into his white T-shirt and Steve knew a good thirty minutes had passed. He held the punching bag to stop its momentum and noticed a distinct lack of noise from behind him. Turning around revealed the simulation course they often used in full display. Large, realistic trees stretched to the ceiling along with a wide expanse of lush grass and a playground. The sounds of birds and children playing through the stereo recreated a nice day at a family park.

The only things missing were three people.

Steve tilted his head, confused, and walked closer to the simulation, “Uh, guys?”

“Captain America! Leader of the Avengers!” Clint said in a dramatically deep voice through the stereo. A giggle sounded to his left followed immediately by a shush. “We have a very tiny person in our possession and will only release him if you do as we say!”

Steve sighed, a smile already forming, “And what would that be?”

“You must participate in a game! Catch the child within the hour and we shall eat all of our vegetables!”

“Yucky!” Steve heard Tony say, forcing a sudden laugh from him.

“Fail and you must buy us ice cream! Mwahaha!”

“Fine! I agree!” Steve shouted and immediately turned his attention to the left where he previously heard Tony giggle.

“No super speed and definitely no shield!”

“I _got_ it,” Steve said with a grin. This was going to be a bit of a challenge, especially with Natasha’s and Clint’s experiences in the field, but one he was sure he would succeed.

Steve waited for the go signal, which took the form of three short beeps.

Lightly jogging over to the group of trees to the left, Steve kept a lookout for any fast moving bodies hiding in the trees’ shadows. Looking up just in case one of them was hiding in the branches, he then saw from the corner of his eyes a muscular figure run across the grass and slip between two trees.

A distraction. That means Nat was close and had just been given enough time to find a safer spot. But who would Tony be with? Natasha, who moved swift and silent and could camouflage herself to near obscurity? Or Clint, who was capable of finding the most creative places to hide and would probably sense him coming a mile away?

Steve stood still and tried to focus on any unusual noise. The fake bird and children noises were a bit distracting, but with enough concentration Steve was able to make out soft footsteps, barely audible if it weren’t for his super hearing, one hundred feet to his two o’clock.

As quiet as possible with his large frame, Steve slowly made his way over and concentrated on the footsteps the entire time. Within a few minutes, Steve could make out Natasha’s red hair between the tightly packed trees and their hanging branches. Quickly, since he knew she could slip between his grasps if given a head start, he emerged from the trees and immediately ducked to dodge her high kick. A session of hand to hand combat later, he finally had her arms behind her back and her body flat on the ground.

Steve looked around, searching for any signs of wavy black hair and large brown eyes. Nope.

Alright, this may be harder than he thought.

Letting go of Natasha’s arms and pulling her up to her feet, was greeted with her smirking face.

“You’re not usually the type to attack from behind.”

Steve rolled his eyes, “Yeah, well, usually I’m not facing the Black Widow.”

“You flatter me.” Natasha nodded up to the ceiling behind him, “Better hurry up. You got forty minutes left.”

Steve whipped around to look at the timer projected above him, and indeed time was ticking down. Of course, when he turned around Natasha was already gone.

Steve didn’t bother finding Natasha—she hadn’t had Tony and he didn’t hear Clint around. Back to the search it was.

Wandering around, ten minutes had passed before Steve saw little footprints imprinted in the grass. Steve couldn’t help but smile. Clint and Nat were too well trained to be leaving marks like these, but Tony obviously wasn’t. Following the little trail, which had disappeared in front of a tree, Steve bent as low as he could before jumping up and grabbing a sturdy branch. Hauling himself up and steadying himself, Steve was able to get a wide view of the surrounding area.

There, Steve was able to make out Clint and a suspicious looking load being carried on his back. He was walking, a little too calmly in Steve’s opinion. Taking the chance, Steve began jumping from branch to branch, landing on each one with barely a rustle.

When he was positioned near Clint, Steve jumped off and landed on the grass with a soft thump. Clint quickly slid off his load and swung it at Steve, who jumped and narrowly missed having his legs tied by the bag’s straps.

No Tony. That means the two switched off while Steve was looking for them.

The fight proceeded with Clint using his acrobatic skills to dodge Steve’s punches while trying to attack Steve’s weaker areas, namely his back and legs. Steve, on the other hand, was monitoring Clint’s moves, seeing a pattern form every time Clint made a jump and tried to swipe at him. Clint may have been tricky, but he was also slower than Steve.

“Try to not keep your movements so predictable next time,” Steve said, an arm around Clint’s neck in a hold. Clint, kneeling on the grass, gave two taps to Steve’s arm and slumped down when he was released.

“Ugh, I’ll keep that in mind,” Clint replied, heaving with a goofy smile. “Tricked you, though.”

Steve grinned and held out his hand, pulling his team mate up when it was accepted. “That, you did.”

Looking up at the timer, thirteen minutes left was shown. Steve’s eyebrows lifted in surprise—time sure flew by when he was having fun.

Leaving Clint behind, Steve began climbing up a tree again, hoping to use height to make his search easier. Focusing his hearing again, ignoring Clint’s footsteps as he went away, Steve noticed the sound of... sand? Definitely sand, and the sound of two pairs of footsteps, one lighter and quicker paced and one with a longer stride. Sand was at the playground, the exact opposite direction Steve headed to when he found Clint.

Steve couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride from how well his teammates worked together, and Tony hadn’t made a peep—that was quite an accomplishment.

With the densely packed trees and the no super speed rule, Steve’s best option to get there quickly was to jump from branch to branch like earlier. As Steve balanced himself and jumped from tree to tree, he began to feel a bit like the character in that movie they watched last month. What was it? Tarzan? Lucky for Steve, the simulation trees weren’t rotten and he didn’t have to worry about a branch snapping from underneath him.

Finally landing on the tree right at the outskirt of the playground, Steve could see Tony in the sandbox, making a robot very similar to Dum-E by using his toy rake as Dum-E’s prongs. Clint and Natasha were surrounding him, bodies in defensive positions as the assessed their surroundings.

With seven minutes left, it was barely enough time to fight off both of them and get Tony as well. But Steve, being who he was, was always up for a challenge.

Steve jogged over to them, a tiny bit of urgency in his steps. Tony, seeing him come, was about to stand up and run over to him with a happy wave of his toy shovel, only to stay put when Clint gently reminded him of their game.

“Remember what we said, Tony?” Clint asked.

Tony nodded, a small pout forming on his face, “I have to stay in the sandbox while you guys play fight.”

“You got it, and remember who to root for?”

Tony, mischievous child he was, gave out a naughty grin and replied, “Steve!”

“You little brat!” Clint was about to turn around if it weren’t for Natasha’s hand smacking the back of his head.

“I hope no villain ever discovers your weakness of taunts by children,” Natasha said while rolling her eyes. She nodded to Steve’s quickly approaching figure, “Hey, captain. Ready to hand over your wallet?”

Steve smirked back, “Just for that, you’re both getting tofu burgers for dinner.”

Both Natasha’s and Clint’s amused faces fell—the two meat lovers had a notorious dislike for ‘meat substitutes.’

Clint attacked first, quick to swipe a leg at Steve’s feet. Steve managed to dodge just in time, but risked leaving an opening for Natasha to jab at his side.

If Steve could get to Tony, he would win. He just had to incapacitate the two long enough to run over there.

Punch. Punch. Block. Jump. Block.

_Three minutes._

Using Natasha’s kick to his advantage, Steve grabbed her leg and tossed her at Clint.

Not expecting a person to be swinging at him, Clint’s eyes widened before barely catching Natasha with a loud, “Oof!”

Steve let out a laugh before running as non-superhumanly possible.

“Geez, Nat, are you made out of steel or something? How much do you weigh?”

“Put me down, idiot. He’s getting away.”

_Two minutes._

Steve was nearly there, just thirty feet left. Oh look, Tony was already greeting him with a victory smile.

He felt the world turn and his breath leave him as his body was yanked down and forced to do a roll. He immediately recognized Natasha’s favorite way of taking someone down—legs wrapped around the neck as she used her momentum to drag the person to the ground.

_One minute._

He forced her off of him, after all super strength wasn’t one of the restrictions, even though it was still a struggle since Natasha could be squirmy when she wanted to. When he found his bearing, he picked up Natasha, carried her, and dumped her back into Clint’s arms before running to the sandbox.

Clint’s confused face, was priceless.

“Will you stop that? Put me down!”

“Look, it’s either I catch you or I drop you! You think this is fun for me?”

Steve laughed all the way to Tony.

_Five seconds._

He was twenty feet away.

_Four seconds._

The two spies were too far back to get him in time.

_Three seconds._

“Steve! Look! I made Dum-E!”

His feet stepped onto sand.

_Two seconds._

“Did you miss me, bud?”

“Yeah!”

_One second._

Tony jumped into his open arms. Large smiles were painted on both of their faces.

_Mission accomplished._

A long beep signaled the end of their game, and twin groans could be heard echoing in the gym.

Tony looked up at Steve. Large brown eyes looked even bigger from this angle, and a pout completed the sad puppy look, “Does that mean I don’t get ice cream?”

Really, how could Steve refuse that face?

“Of course you can have ice cream. You just have to eat all of your vegetables as well, alright?” Steve settled Tony up on the back of his neck, chubby legs on each shoulder, as he gripped each foot to make sure Tony was extra secure.

“Okay,” Tony dragged out the last syllable, making his resignation known.

As they walked away, or more correctly Steve walked away, the simulation disappeared and the original state of the gym returned.

“Come on, you two. Ice cream’s on me,” Steve said.

“Yes!” Clint exclaimed with a fist pump in the air.

Looking up at the happy child gripping his hair, Steve wondered one little thing, “How’d you guys keep Tony so quiet anyways?”

“Oh, five minutes after we began he fell asleep. So we just let him nap on the grass,” Clint said while walking next to him. Clint reached a hand up to ruffle Tony’s hair. “We lucked out. Kid started whining for you after he woke up.” Which must have been shortly before Steve heard Nat and Tony walking to the sandbox. She probably convinced him Steve was coming soon.

“What kind of ice cream do you want, Tony?” Steve asked, shaking Tony’s left foot lightly to get his attention.

“Hot fudge sundae! And milkshake! And cookies! And...” Tony’s excitedly listed off everything he could as they left the gym. His rambling continued all the way to the fifty-sixth floor.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope this chapter felt fun for you guys. I really liked the playfulness the team had in here :D


	8. Tantrums and Pirates

“Tony, I told you. You can’t go into the lab. It’s too dangerous,” Steve said for what felt like the millionth time. A tight frown was on his face as he attempted to deal with Tony at eight in the morning.

“But Dum-E is there! I wanna play with him!” Tony pouted and crossed his arms. His little legs began stomping on the carpet and a high pitched noise between and whine and a cry formed.

“Those are crocodile tears and you know it,” Steve said with a sigh. “You played with him last night and he needs to charge right now.” He picked Tony up, ignoring his squirming, and plopped him down on a chair at the dining table. He pushed the plate of eggs and toast to Tony and gave a stern look.

Tony looked up at Steve defiantly and crossed his arms again, “Don’t want it.”

“Whether you want it or not you have to eat it.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No!”

“ _Yes_.” Steve was not going to argue with a child. He wasn’t.

Pushing the plate closer to Tony, he sat down in the chair next to him and picked up the fork, stabbing a piece of egg. He brought the bite to Tony’s mouth, but was met with full resistance in the form of lips pursing and his head twisting away whenever the fork got near.

With a great big “No!” Tony smacked Steve’s hand away. The fork and egg flew across the room and landed with a soft thud against the carpet. Steve stared, astonished, at the bits of yellow, only snapping out of his frozen state when he heard a door banging shut.

“Tony Stark!” Steve shouted, standing up and glaring at the closed bedroom door. “You come out of there right now!” No reply.

Steve crossed the room, and stood in front of the door with one hand closed around the doorknob. Locked.

“Tony, do not make me come in there. Open the door.”

“No!”

“Tony! What has gotten into you today? Come out right now or you’re in serious trouble!” Steve knew he could open the door. He could just squeeze the doorknob until it fell off and drag Tony out, but that felt so barbaric and would probably scare any ounce of trust Tony had away, so he resisted.

“No! No! No!” Something was tossed at the door, causing Steve to jerk back. “Go away!”

Steve closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Maybe Tony needed a cool down period. Maybe they _both_ needed one.

“Alright. I’m going.” Steve stepped backwards a few feet, watching the door to see if Tony would unlock it. When he was met with silence, he sighed and went to clean up the mess of eggs.

Their morning was going perfectly fine. Great, even. Tony woke Steve up by jumping on his stomach. They brushed their teeth together. Steve showered as Tony watched cartoons in the living room. They even made breakfast together, making scrambled eggs and toast like Tony wanted. It all went downhill when Tony wanted Dum-E to be present. Now they’re _fighting_ , although Steve felt more sad than mad. He wanted to make the best of Tony’s deaging by giving him a fun childhood and look at where they were now.

Steve had just finished washing up the dishes when the Avengers’ alarm sounded.

“Jarvis, what’s the emergency?” Steve asked as he looked at the still locked door.

“It appears that the aliens you fought have returned. They seem to be concentrated within Central Park but are steadily progressing outwards. Director Fury requires all available Avengers to the scene.”

Steve frowned. He couldn’t just leave Tony alone, but those aliens were attacking civilians, “Who’s the closest person around that’s not an Avenger?”

“That would be Nick Fury at 1.3 miles away.”

“... Call him.”

*****

“Tony?” Steve knocked on the door. His uniform was on, and the shield was against his back, but he couldn’t help but feel like he was going into battle with a heavy heart. “I have to go to work for a bit. Nick is going to take care of you while I’m gone, alright?”

Silence.

Steve turned around, a dejected look on his face, which he quickly wiped away when Fury raised an eyebrow at him.

“We had a bit of an argument.”

“Just go fight those damn things before I have to stay here any longer,” Fury said as he walked over to the couch, sat down, and grabbed a folded up newspaper.

Steve frowned slightly at Fury’s words. _Language_. “I made him food. Give it to him when he comes out. He tends to take a nap at eleven. If it’s noon and we’re not back, give him the yogurt and blueberries in the fridge for his snack. There are juice boxes in the fridge as well but let him poke the straw through and only let him have one. If we’re somehow not back by six, there are meals in the freezer.” At Fury’s deadpan look, Steve added,”And takeout menus on the counter.”

Steve walked to the elevator, turning around right before he stepped past the open door.

“ _What?_ ” Fury grumbled out, his eye glaring at the newspaper he had yet read.

“Don’t curse when Tony’s around.”

“ _Fine. Go._ ”

*****

Even though it had been less than a week since Steve last fought these purple slime aliens, he forgot how _annoying_ they were. Punching them destroyed them, but the slime got in his gloves, his boots, his _cowl_. He felt like he was going to slip every time he kicked one. And of course when they were down one member, there were more aliens too.

“Hey, Nat. Dare you to lick one for a hundred bucks,” Clint said over the communication link.

“Cash now and I’ll do it.”

“You know I don’t carry money in this.”

“Focus, you two. And that is a _very_ bad idea,” Steve said as he tossed his shield, slicing through three aliens like jelly.

“Can’t believe Fury’s _babysitting_ ,” Clint said with a snort. “How’d Tony even agree?”

“He didn’t exactly...”

“That must have been a screaming match I’m glad I wasn’t in,” Clint replied with a laugh.

Steve let out a huff and punched the next alien a little harder than necessary just to vent some of his feelings.

It was past noon now and Steve was hoping that with a nap and some food, Tony would no longer be upset. Although progress was good, there were so many of these purple creatures it felt like they only knocked back a little more than half. The Hulk was happily stomping on them, like a puppy jumping in puddles, but Natasha and Clint were starting to slow down. Steve, himself, was feeling alright for now, but he knew that in six hours he would slow down too. Making it back by nighttime now seemed more hopeful than not.

It was times like this, when they started feeling tiredness catching up, that he missed Tony’s rambling the most.

“Captain, civilians in a five mile radius have been evacuated. Director Fury has sent assistance,” Jarvis’s voice said. Just as Jarvis finished speaking, two planes soared above him, shooting at the aliens near the perimeter with extreme precision.

“Two planes? Someone must be getting antsy,” Clint said.

Suddenly, they felt a rumble and a large burst of lightening struck what felt like inches away from Steve.

“Friends! I hear grape jelly has infested your center park,” Thor said, a great big smile on his face when he saw Steve.

“ _And_ Thor?”

Steve, relieved with the assistance, also felt something was off. He squinted suspiciously at the jets, wondering if there was an even bigger attack coming that Fury didn’t tell them about.

“Great timing, Thor. We need to keep the perimeter secured. There are more of these things than you think,” Steve said, putting emphasis on what ‘secured’ meant by tossing his shield through two more aliens.

“No worries, Captain. I can handle them,” Thor said as he began winding up Mjolnir.

Clouds immediately began gathering. Steve could feel the static in the air as flashes of lightening lit up the sky every few seconds. Thor flew up, only to fly down again, this time slamming Mjolnir to the ground. Every alien within a forty feet radius of Thor was struck by lightening, and purple slime scattered into the air.

Thor popped up from the ground with excited and satisfied grin on his face.

“Nice, we might be home early for once!” Clint yelled out.

*****

Natasha and Clint were leaning against Bruce, who looked like he was struggling under their combined weight and wincing from their sticky hair. Thor was practically bouncing in place, the adrenaline from a successful day still coursing through him. Steve, however, was staring silently as the numbers in the elevator as It went up.

“I don’t even wanna shower first. Pizza is waiting for me,” Clint groaned.

“Well, I do. So hands off my breadsticks,” Natasha grumbled in reply. She flicked a clump of goopy hair out of her face.

“Whatever, I’ll just take some of Steve’s,” Clint said and nudged Steve lightly with his elbow. “Right, Steve? Ri- Oh. My. God.”

The elevator slid open on the communal floor, revealing a sight that had even Natasha gasping.

There were bits of metal everywhere. All over the floor, the counters, the couch, even in the fireplace. There was a strong odor in the air, sharp and pungent like smoke.

Steve felt like his heart turned to ice at the sight of what could only be an explosion. He sprinted out of the elevator, grinding the pieces of metal into the floor.

“Tony!” Steve cried out. “Tony!” He checked the living room, under the couches, even—terrified of what he might find—out of the windows. He could hear the rest of the team searching for Tony, just as frantic as he was, but he couldn’t register the noise.

Just then, they heard a scream. A scream that sounded like a child’s and could only belong to one person.

“Let go! Let go! Let go!” The sound of a kick and a grunt came from the emergency stairwell right before the door was pushed open and a little boy came running out.

“Tony!” Steve ran to Tony and scooped the boy up into his arms, burying his face into the top of Tony’s soft hair. “You’re okay! Oh, god, you’re alright!” Steve’s throat felt like it was being squeezed between a fist. He couldn’t get anymore words out and instead showed his relief by holding Tony tighter.

“Steve!” Tony cried, his little fists clutched at the star on Steve’s chest.

Feeling wetness against his collar and Tony’s trembling, Steve lifted his head and looked at Tony’s face. The little boys face was red and streaked with tears. His eyelashes were clumped together and Steve noticed a smudge of black soot on his forehead.

“Are you alright?” Steve asked, wiping away tears with his thumb. “Tell me why you’re crying.”

Tony took a deep, stuttering breath, “Y-y-you... L-left me!” Another burst of tears accompanied his sentence.

“Oh, Tony. I’m sorry,” Steve said and wiped his tears again. He waited until Tony’s sobbing died down before catching his eyes, “I would never leave you. I had to go to work.”

Tony looked away to the floor, “M-mom and dad go to work all the time...”

Steve gently tilted Tony’s head up again, “I will never leave you, Tony. Do you understand? Sometimes I might have to go away for a bit to save people, but I will always come back for you.”

“P-promise?” Tony wobbled out.

“I promise,” Steve said and pinched Tony’s wet cheeks when he smiled.

“Uh, hate to interrupt, but I think I found our ‘intruder,’” Clint said.

Steve looked up, right as Tony yelled, “Go away, pirate!”

Nick Fury was not looking happy.

*****

“So you’re telling us that a _four_ year old slipped between your watch and disassembled our toaster and laptops to make a robot?” Clint asked through chewing his pizza.

They were all sitting at the dining table, eating as they listened to Fury’s story of what happened while they were gone.

“How’d he get the tools in the first place?” Bruce asked.

Fury’s eyebrow twitched, “I gave it to him.”

“ _Why?_ ” Natasha asked.

“Because he _said_ he would stop crying.”

“I can’t help it if I cry,” Tony said as he stuck his tongue out at Fury.

“You little-“

“Calm down. He’s four,” Natasha said and hesitatingly handed Fury a breadstick.

“Hey, he took care you for me. Be good,” Steve reprimanded.

“Sorry...” Tony said with a pout.

“I’m not cleaning up his mess,” Fury said as he took a bite of the breadstick.

“Thanks for taking care of him,” Steve said with an amused smile. He knew Fury wasn’t as mad as he seemed.

*****

As Steve swept the bits of wire and metal off the floor, Tony walked up to him.

“Heya, kiddo. Whatcha got there?” Steve asked when he noticed Tony holding something behind his back.

Tony nervously rocked back and forth on his feet and shyly looked down, “A robot.”

Steve leaned the broom and dustpan against the wall and squatted down, “Can I see?”

Nodding his head, Tony brought his robot around and placed it on the floor. The robot, although tiny, was impressively detailed. In fact, it looked a lot like a certain robot in the lab.

“Is that Dum-E?” Steve asked amazed.

“Uh-huh,” Tony nodded and hurriedly pressed a button. The robot began moving, shooting forward on its wheels like something kicked it before stopping for a second and repeating. It didn’t stop until it hit the leg of the couch and turned back around.

“I found a train and used the spring in the toaster. And the wires are from the laptop...” Tony excitedly said before quietly trailing off. “Are you mad?”

Steve took his eyes off the little robot, “What? Of course not! Why would I be mad?”

“I used things without permission...”

“It’s alright, Tony. You made something so amazing! You didn’t hurt yourself making this did you?” Steve asked, worried about possible burns and cuts.

“No, I asked the pirate to help me,” Tony said with a bashful smile. “You really like it?”

“It’s wonderful! I love it!” Steve was slightly knocked off balance by Tony’s hug but quickly redeemed himself. Steve smiled and hugged Tony back.

“Sorry I yelled today. And knocked the eggs. And locked the door. And-“ Tony began mumbling against Steve’s chest, but was cut off by the man’s laugh.

“It’s alright, Tony. I forgive you.”

They stayed in the living room for a little longer, with Steve cleaning up and Tony helping as the robot sputtered across the room.

*****

“Here’s your milk, Tony,” Steve said, and handed Tony his cup.

“Why do I have to sleep in here?” Tony whined.

They were in Steve’s guest room where the third transition was to happen. Tony, lying against the large pillows and freshly showered, looked unnervingly little in the large bed.

“Because you’re getting bigger, so you need your own room.” Steve took the empty cup after Tony finished and placed it on the nightstand next to the mini Dum-E. He then pulled up the blanket and tucked Tony in alongside his Captain America plushie.

“You’re not going to leave me, right?” Tony whispered. Oh gods, no. When he thought Tony was in danger earlier, he felt like his heart froze over. Purposely leaving Tony? Steve had no doubt that he wouldn’t be able to do that. Ever.

“Of course I won’t. I’m going to be in my room and you’ll be jumping on my stomach first thing in the morning,” Steve said and tweaked Tony’s nose. He slid into the bed next to Tony, who eagerly climbed on top of Steve until he was resting comfortably against his chest, “I’ll stay until you fall asleep, okay?”

“Okay,” Tony mumbled. His eyes were already beginning to close, being lulled to sleep by Steve gently patting his back.

 


End file.
